Haha, no swipe intended . You're converting me into a Cookie fan too. Even my GF said she stood out in the looks department compared to the other JPN players. Old Cookie would have been taken to the cleaners by Saina. Cookie v2.0 is leaner and meaner physically and mentally. Not to mention more mature and cuter [AHEM] I fear for Saina against WYH v2.0. This newer cyborg is flat out state of the art
If LD really lost yesterday in straight set only, I think will the same like you too Like we know in the Japan next tourney LD will have tough opponent before into the Final meet LCW.
. Whether Lin Dan will, or will not; he will only think about it when he is playing against his own teammates. When he is playing against others, he should eliminate them one at a time (for his teammates' sake). .
Never thought I'd say this, but Kudos to HH Even though LD was leading from first set, I saw some glimpses of HH which made him won the only thing to shout about All England many moons ago. Does the fact that he is playing under the banner of KLRC makes him a more responsible and committed player? Also, does anyone notice that LD hardly ever acknowledges his coaches' comments at game intervals? Not even a nod.
What is happening to Wang Zhengming? Once touted as the fast up and coming player to take over from LD, now his road to the top is slowing down.
You can see from the match that even the chinese coaches were shaking their head in disbelief. Even clear winners at net went out from LD. Call it whatever you want, you can say that LD was not at his best or just toying around or maybe an off day. But HH had the chance to nail it. I mean really nail it. If LD was at this form playing with LCW, he would have been a goner. HH should have been concentrating more on making less errors. I think he was just expecting LD to give it to him when he was leading after the 2nd game interval. Like Morten Frost used to comment on LCW vs LD games - you have to make initiative to take the game from LD, you can't expect him to give the game to you.
Mental Strength No I am not going to talk about HH needing mental strength to beat LD. Everybody knows that. But rather, I am saying that for LD, to be a game down, and trailing 14-18 from behind in the 2d game, staying calm and gathering what it takes to win the 2nd game - that takes mental strength.
Yup, Wang YH ver 2.0 proves it yet again, demolished Gu Juan yesterday and today just walloped none other than Saina Nehwal. What a true world champion is Wang Yihan now! As Wang SX, if she struggles against Juliane Schenk afterwards, it means I'm right about her - she certainly must learn how to attack as Morten Frost said it twice before: that's how he would train her as her coach, to raise her level of play. It's my humble opinion that never has a defensive or passive player been at the top, at least not for long, no matter what sports. To draw an analogy with table-tennis, you have great defensive exponents like Kim Kyung-Ah and Joo Se-hyuk, always within the top 10 but never within top 3 or seldom win a major title. To be frank, I actually like Wang SX a lot some time ago when she burst onto the world stage with her unusual but effective style of play, her knack of twisting and turning her opponents as Jo Clark the well-respected commentator often described her ability. But as time goes by, one by one her opponents came to realize her playing style and anticipate better her return shots, mostly drops and clears with hardly any smashes, and was able to tackle her and gave her a hard time. That's when she started going downhill lately, and it begins to disappoint and bores me, though I still hope to see her transformation, just as what we are witnessing now in Wang Yihan ver 2.0.
I noticed Lin Dan's attitude towards his coach(es) too, not paying attention, often walking away, almost disrespectful; only he can get away with it. At least Lee CW listens and nods to his coach, no matter whether it's Misbun, Rashid or Tay Seu Bok.
Morten Frost said Wang Zengming and Viktor Axelsen(the Danish 17-yr-old) has the potential to rise to the top but not there yet.
Well for WSX's diehard fans, don't be disheartened. LCW started as a very good defensive player covering 4 corners of the court well too. It was only after Li Mao took over, LCW's tranformation into an attacking player with sudden injection of pace come into being.
HH could be screwing himself after losing the match as he had the chance to make a sensational headline in the newspapers. He blew it at 18-14.
Yes, more Cookies and more Cookie fans too! And it's not just the looks. She is terribly cute when playing badminton. In this match against Tine, as seen from 13:34 to 15:00, she does not one but two violent foot sweeps in a row, lol! Certainly no lack of trying. [video=youtube;PIRDkbhfG4o]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIRDkbhfG4o[/video] The capitulation of Saina against WYH (which vindicates your suspicions) was disappointing with respect to Cookie's results. It will be interesting to see how she will fare in her homeground next week. But I feel that she has gone from strength to strength recently. Not to mention her height advantage. I was about to declare that this decade belongs to who I see as ZN's successor, when she suddenly lost to JYJ. Probably a little more time is needed.
Keen observation. Even the commentators felt for Cookie when her feet went all funny. JYJ always beats her own teammates. Her China Super league record is unparalleled. BUT... somewhat suspicious that BOTH WSX and JYJ made the final against clearly superior teammates. Hmmm....